Richard Cronk

A private memorial service will be held by family members at a later date for Richard Elwood Cronk, 74, of Roswell, who died Thursday Sept. 9 at a local nursing home after a long battle with Parkinsons and Lewy Body disease.

Mr. Cronk was born September 3, 1936, in Wilmar, CA, to Walter and Edith Cronk. His father preceded him in death.

He married Carolyn Kibbe in Fullerton, CA, on June 16, 1956, who survives him at the home.

Survivors include three sons, Kendall and Caleb Cronk, both of Fort Worth, and Joshua Cronk, of Marshall, MI three daughters, Crystal Pritchett of Clovis, Celeste Snider of Albuquerque, and Rachel Owens of Ocean Spring, MS one brother Ronald Cronk his wife Jan Cronk of Santa Barbara, CA his sisterinlaw Panda Moffitt and her husband Bill, of Roswell fifteen grandchildren, twentyfive greatgrandchildren.

Richard graduated from Fullerton Union High School in 1954. He studied mathematics and physics and received his degree in Electrical Engineering from Cal Poly in 1960 the same year that his first daughter was born. He worked for the Santa Barbara based defense contracting firm of Edgerton, Germeshausen and Grier, Inc., EGG measuring the effects of nuclear tests in Nevada.

He was transferred to Albuquerque in 1965 then the family made their home in Moriarty from 19701981 where they formed Cronk and Kline, Inc., as a jobber service for Chevron Corp. He also served a short while as Torrance County Manager. Richard bought an import business in Oahu, HI, where he and his family lived for five years.

Richard had always felt a calling to tell others about the love of God and he became a minister after graduating from the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX in 1989.

His first church was the Parker Dam Baptist Church in California. He then pastored Temple Baptist Church in Battle Creek, MI, from 19932001.

The couple then moved overseas and Richard became the minister of Central Baptist Church in Okinawa from 20012003, even though he had been diagnosed with Parkinsons Disease.

Illness forced him to retire and the couple moved to Godley, TX, before finally moving to Roswell in 2009.

Richard loved his family, fly fishing, and hunting but mostly he loved the Lord and spreading the Gospel message that: God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us Rom. 8:8

13For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

14How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard and how shall they hear without a preacher

15And how shall they preach, except they be sent as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good thingsRomans 10:1315

He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.